Ryzen 7950X3D assessment: An costly however extremely environment friendly 16-core CPU
Andrew Cunningham
Towards the tip of Ryzen 5000’s run, AMD launched the Ryzen 7 5800X3D, a particular model of the eight-core 5800X with 64MB of additional L3 cache stacked on high of it.
The end result was an attention-grabbing however area of interest experiment. The additional “3D V-Cache” helped the CPU carry out notably properly in video games, however decrease clock speeds (plus larger energy use and warmth technology) harm its all-around app efficiency. The additional value was (and stays) method out of proportion to the pace beneficial properties over the 5700X or 5800X. And the 5800X3D was the tip of the road for the outdated socket AM4 platform, making it an attention-grabbing improve choice if you happen to already had an older Ryzen PC however an ungainly option to construct an all-new PC round.
Now AMD is again with an expanded vary of Zen 4-based Ryzen 7000X3D processors. The $599 12-core Ryzen 9 7900X3D and $699 16-core Ryzen 9 7950X3D can be found now, whereas the 8-core Ryzen 7 7800X3D will arrive on April 6.
The expanded scope of the lineup means that AMD has gotten extra comfy with the manufacturing finish of the equation—3D V-Cache is not in each Ryzen CPU, nevertheless it’s additionally not being restricted to a single product launched at a bizarre level within the Ryzen 7000 life cycle. AMD has addressed a number of the 5800X3D’s largest shortfalls by boosting clock speeds, although not at all times in elegant methods. The CPUs nonetheless really feel like experiments in some methods, and most of the people shopping for or constructing a PC might be served simply fantastic by one of many cheaper, non-X3D CPUs (or one thing from Intel). However the efficiency—and particularly the facility effectivity—of the 7950X3D makes it value a search for anybody constructing a gaming PC that additionally does double-duty as a video modifying rig or a workstation.
Pricing and comparisons
The Ryzen 7000 CPU lineup is at the moment segmented into three sub-categories: the X-series CPUs that had been accessible at launch, non-X-series CPUs for mainstream PCs with decrease default energy settings and decrease costs, and now the costly, gamer-focused X3D fashions. In comparison with the X sequence, you are paying someplace between $100 and $150 extra for CPUs that largely promise improved recreation efficiency.
| Present pricing | Cores/threads | Clocks (Base/Enhance) | Whole cache (L2+L3) | TDP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ryzen 9 7950X3D | $699 | 16c/32t | 4.2/5.7 GHz | 144MB (16+128) | 120 W (162 W PPT) |
| Ryzen 9 7900X3D | $599 | 12c/24t | 4.4/5.6 GHz | 140MB (12+128) | 120 W (162 W PPT) |
| Ryzen 9 7950X | $589 | 16c/32t | 4.5/5.7 GHz | 80MB (16+64) | 170 W (230 W PPT) |
| Ryzen 9 7900X | $448 | 12c/24t | 4.7/5.6 GHz | 76MB (12+64) | 170 W (230 W PPT) |
| Core i9-13900K | $580 | 8P/16E/32t | 3.0/5.7 GHz (P-cores) | 68MB (32+36) | 125 W PL1/253 W PL2 |
| Core i7-13700K | $418 | 8P/8E/24t | 3.4/5.3 GHz (P-cores) | 54MB (24+30) | 125 W PL1/253 W PL2 |
Costs for AMD’s different Zen 4 processors have settled a bit because the chips had been launched again in September, partly as a result of Intel’s Twelfth- and Thirteenth-generation CPUs have been priced very competitively and partly as a result of CPU and desktop PC gross sales are method down in comparison with early within the pandemic (although they’re nonetheless larger than they had been pre-pandemic). If you happen to learn our older protection, you would possibly discover that the 7950X3D is launching on the identical value that the common 7950X launched at lower than six months in the past; that is presumably not the aggressive place AMD needed to be on this early in Ryzen 7000’s life cycle.
Trying on the high of Intel’s Thirteenth-generation lineup, the i9-13900K goes for $600 or much less nowadays (usually, the KF or non-Okay model of the 13900 may prevent much more cash, however as of this writing, all three are hovering in the identical value vary). Its important shortcoming is that it is advisable let it eat a lot of energy to get probably the most out of it, particularly in comparison with the 7950X3D, however by way of upfront prices, you possibly can nonetheless put a top-end Intel system collectively for a bit much less cash than an AM5 system.
As we have written earlier than, AMD’s platform additionally mandates a brand new motherboard with a brand new socket and chipset and DDR5 reminiscence, whereas Intel’s CPUs work with a wider vary of cheaper motherboards, and you’ll nonetheless use DDR4 RAM to save cash if you happen to like. However if you happen to’re significantly contemplating a 7950X in your PC, you’d additionally most likely be contemplating a DDR5-compatible Z690 or Z790 motherboard for an Intel CPU, which closes that value hole a bit. Sticking an i9-13900K in an inexpensive motherboard with an H610 chipset would technically work, nevertheless it’s doubtless that the facility supply system in that motherboard would limit its efficiency.
